On September 10, 2024, the Belgian Food Regulatory Authority issued a revised document on pork export regulatory requirements, the original document was published in 2011, compared with the previous, the new revision mainly has the following points:

(1) Emphasis on batch management and traceability systems. More emphasis is placed on the importance of batch management and traceability system, requiring the establishment of a sound traceability system in various links such as farms, slaughterhouses, segmentation plants and cold storage to ensure the traceability of products. The document details how to use the BELTRACE and SANITEL/SANITRACE databases for traceability, and requires batch marking of meat, such as slaughterhouses and dividing plants, for traceability purposes;

(2) Clear export requirements. It is clearly stipulated that pork products for export are to be handled separately from other pork products in terms of time and/or space, and requires special marking of meat that meets the requirement of "born and raised in Belgium" in links such as dividing plants and cold storage for traceability. The document requires food companies to ensure that products meet the requirement of "born and raised in Belgium" and are verified by an official veterinarian before export;

(3) Refine the operation process. For example, the farmer is required to confirm on the FCI document that the pig meets the requirement of "born and raised in Belgium", the slaughterhouse is required to mark the lot of the animal, and the dividing plant is required to mark the lot of the meat. It is required that each link should establish a recording system to record the information of products in and out for traceability;

(4) Enhance the awareness of regulations. The relevant regulations and guidelines have been interpreted in detail to help food companies better understand the "born and raised in Belgium" requirement and ensure compliance with the regulations.